$11.7M sent to SENMC from Energy Department to train nuclear waste workers in Carlsbad

An $11.7 million federal grant was award to Carlsbad’s local college by the U.S. Department of Energy to train workers in the nuclear waste sector, as the college attempts to address local needs.

Southeast New Mexico College, formerly known as New Mexico State University Carlsbad, broke away from the NMSU system in July 2021 to become an independent school targeting workforce needs in the community.

As part of that mission, the college was tasked with working with local industries to develop classes to support their workforce needs.

More: Nuclear waste site near Carlsbad used to generate renewable energy via federal plan

On Monday, the DOE announced it awarded the grant to fund training for workers at the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant, a nuclear waste repository about 30 miles east of Carlsbad.

At the WIPP site, transuranic (TRU) nuclear waste is disposed of via burial in an underground salt deposit about 2,000 feet beneath the surface.

This requires myriad activities in mining, waste handling, maintenance and documentation, and SENMC President Kevin Beardmore said the fund will go to training WIPP workers “across the board.”

More: Feds digging up nuclear waste in Los Alamos for disposal at Carlsbad-area repository

“We have a fairly broad definition to allow us to train them across the board, beyond what is happening at WIPP,” he said. “It’s really at how to serve the needs in the community.”

Beardmore said this mission of SENMC was different than a traditional university, which the college diverged from when becoming separate from Las Cruces-based NMSU.

Before leaving the system, Carlsbad’s was one four NMSU branch campuses also in Doña Ana County, Alamogordo and Grants.

More: South Carolina nuclear waste coming to facility along Texas-New Mexico border

They all report to the main campus in Las Cruces, and Beardmore said local staff and administrators felt disregarded by headquarters.

“People didn’t feel like they were being heard in Las Cruces,” Beardmore said. “We’re moving beyond what a university thinks about providing. I see it as being responsible for local needs. We’re supporting and industry than has been here with us.

“That’s really what led to creating this college.”

More: Holtec will lose millions in storing nuclear waste in New Mexico, whistleblower suit says

The DOE will work with SENMC to develop the courses in the program, also addressing a workforce shortage at WIPP and increasing interest in jobs supporting the facility, read a DOE news release.

It’s intended to create a “pipeline” sending college students to careers at WIPP, said Mark Bollinger, manager of the DOE’s Carlsbad Field Office, which oversees WIPP’s operation in tandem with contractor Salado Isolation Mining Contractors.

“The communities of Southeast New Mexico have long been the backbone of the WIPP workforce and their contributions to the success of the WIPP mission cannot be understated,” he said. “The Carlsbad Field Office is excited by this opportunity to team up with SENMC to educate and train members of our community here in Southeast New Mexico.”

More: Nuclear waste repository near Carlsbad staying open longer than estimated, officials say

That will help boost the economy in the Carlsbad area, Bollinger said, of which nuclear is a key industry, along with oil and gas extraction and potash mining.

“This new cooperative agreement represents a landmark investment that will further strengthen the New Mexico economy by helping prepare students at Southeast New Mexico College for great careers for years to come,” Bollinger.

Recent estimates, based on the availability of waste, projected WIPP could be operating until 2080 as TRU waste is sent to the areas from DOE sites across the U.S.

More: Trinity Site nuke test exposed New Mexicans to radiation. Senate votes to compensate them

Carlsbad Mayor Dale Janway, an ardent supporter of the college’s independence during the legislative process, said SENMC will prove essential to maintaining the WIPP mission and other industries in the region.

“Workforce training and workforce development is key to all of Carlsbad’s vital industries, including the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant,” Janway said. “We believe Southeast New Mexico is well on the way toward being one of the nation’s premiere training facilities. Thank you to the Department of Energy for developing this agreement.”

Beardmore said the grant funding was indicative of the DOE’s commitment to Carlsbad and WIPP mission.

“I think that their commitment to the college is evident. This is about a more global look at the pipeline of employees,” he said. “This is the important part. How do we find the people we need? We need to be developing them along the way. “It’ll contribute to their (DOE’s) commitment to safety while keeping that facility there.”

Adrian Hedden can be reached at 575-628-5516, achedden@currentargus.com or @AdrianHedden on Twitter.

This article originally appeared on Carlsbad Current-Argus: $11.7M grant to train nuclear waste workers at SENMC in Carlsbad